You may not know this about me...but I am totally gaga over Bollywood movies, sarees and Indian cuisine. Yesssssss, Indian cuisine! Whether it's Kashmiri, Punjabi, Rajasthani, Marwari, Gharwal and Pahari, Awadh, Luchnawi, Andhra Pradesh, Telengana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, or Karnataka, my palette spans the Indian subcontinent and I have yet to be disappointed. Furthermore, if I could find a nice old Indian woman to cook traditional dishes for me every night, a serious carnivore such as myself could become a vegetarian, with absolutely no remorse or regret. With all the exotic cuisines I have tried, no culture has perfected the art of the vegetarian dish that could sway carnivores such as myself to the green side like the Indians. The mixture of sour, sweet and spicy usually results in an aromatic, sense and taste bud nirvana that is second only to the real nirvana. Which brings me to Dal... There are many types of dal from all corners of India...dal is basically a lentil dish and oh, how India has perfected the lentil! This particular recipe is a mashup of other recipes I have come across (most of the authors I have forgotten, so my apologies) but largely based on a recipe I found from Whole Foods. Without further ado:
I HEART Retail Therapy's Indian Dal Recipe
Ingredients 2 cups of lentils, sorted and rinsed 2 tbsp EVOO 1 yellow onion 1 tsp of cumin seeds 1/4 tsp ground cardamom 4 cloves of garlic 2 tbsps finely chopped ginger 4 cups of veggie broth 1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes with juice 1/3 cup fresh cilantro 1 tsp ground turmeric 1/4 tsp fine himalayan salt 1 jalapeno
Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onions and cook until softened (about 5 minutes). Add cumin, cardamom, garlic, ginger and cook, stirring often, until fragrant (about 2-3 minutes). Add broth, lentils, tomatoes, cilantro, turmeric, salt and jalapeno and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer, stirring often until lentils are soft (about 15 minutes). Serve over rice or by itself.
**Special note: I have substituted the veggie broth for chicken broth (I am not a vegetarian) and it came out delicious. With dals, the fresher the ingredients the better. However you can use what is in your spice cabinet, you just may have to tweak the quantities. Also the recipe calls for the lentils to be cooked in about 15 minutes and with red lentils it can cook that quickly; however, with the yellow lentils (or green lentils) it usually takes about 30-40 minutes to get soft. I also throw kale in my dish, some people add mixed veggies or nothing else at all.**
This is the finished deliciousness. I attempted to take a pretty picture for the blog but in reality getting the juices and mixing up the lentils in rice (I used jasmine) is really the key...and a lot less prettier. As Always, Happy Eating!!
I have spent the better part of my morning, steaming, bathing, getting scrubbed, and having the living {insert four letter word here} beat out of me via shiatsu massage...at Spa World, USA.
For those unfamiliar with Spa World, it is a jimjilbang, a Korean-style bathhouse. The jimjilbang is a recent cultural phenomenon that grew out of
a centuries-old public bathhouse tradition. Spa World is a 24-7 complex
featuring a Korean restaurant, smoking and sleeping rooms, a gym and a
child-care center. And boy, do those Koreans know how to party. Nestled in an inconspicuous strip mall off of route 28 in Centreville, VA (DC Metro area), it looks like a...well, a restaurant. However, when you step inside, a whole other world awaits you.
Entrance at Spa World USA
This place has bade pools, saunas, salt rooms, crystal amethyst rooms, blue onyx rooms, massage rooms, sleeping rooms, locker rooms; you could spend the weekend there, literally!
The first time I went to Spa World, I went with my mother. We were strictly there for massage, so we walked into the womens locker room, complete with hard wood floors, leather furniture and well, lockers and headed up stairs for a 30 minute deep tissue massage. I will not lie, shiatsu is not for the faint of heart, but after the endorphins kick in you feel amazing. When my mom headed out of her session, her disheveled hair and easy appearance made me ask her if she had a happy ending! She had not, she just felt marvelous.
Reception area at Spa World USA
So my second time around, I wanted to explore what else this spa wonderland had to offer. I paid my $85 ($35 for all day access to facilities and $50 for a shiatsu massage) and immediately changed into my citrus tangerine prisoner uniform. Yes, your uniform (the mandatory Spa World uniform) looks as if you should be picking up litter on the side of the road. I decided to start with my massage. A young lady with a small frame, worked my back and legs with force and deadly accuracy. It was borderline excruciating at first, however, after the adrenaline started pumping, it was heaven. I stumbled out of my massage room and decided to head to the bade pool. Now, when entering the bade pool, nudity is not an option, it is mandatory.
Poultice Rooms at Spa World USA
I admit, I am a bit of a prude. I am not stripping for anyone except the mirror, or my husband. When, I reached the locker room, there were ladies in different stages of undress, ages and body types ranging from slim to quite large. All of them seemed perfectly comfortable with their nudity. I stripped, and gave myself a pep talk, which consisted of, {insert expletive here} it! The great thing about being in to fashion is, it teaches you that everything in life is how you play it! Meaning, if you act like your feces smells like roses in a neon green sheath dress and black tights and neon yellow heels most people will believe you. (Hint, hint-you know that was plain ugly, I don't care what designer grafitti'ed their name across it), So armed with my {expletive} it attitude, I strode (rather quickly) to the bade pool. It was delicious. After my deep tissue massage, the bade pool was warm, relaxing and inviting.
Bade Pool at Spa World USA
Spa World calls says their bade pool is state of the art water therapy. They even have a routine for the bade pool! You spend so many minutes on each part of the pool which has a variety of jets and fountains, that are designed to offer different types of hydrotherapy. Because I was mildly uncomfortable with my nudity and the shiatsu massage turned my muscles into jelly I was perfectly content with the bubble jet.
Amethyst Room at Spa World USA
While sitting there, I realized no one else was bothered by their nudity (nor mine). There were no creepy gawkers and the bade pools are separated by gender, so my own self consciousness, slightly subsided. After about ten minutes of pure relaxation, a large group of women came to the bade pool. I decided to peel myself from the bubble jet so they could enjoy the bade pool routine. From there I moved to the Dream Bath which consisted of high pressured water streams directly on my calves, soles, waist and shoulders. I really could have stayed in the Dream Bath for the rest of the day, but the large group of women seemed like a feisty bunch and they moved rather quickly. Next, I tried the Hydro Jet. You stand and jets from all sides massage your body from the shoulders down. IT.WAS.AWESOME. After the Hydro Jet I decided to exit the bade pool, because the group behind me, made me feel rushed from station to station. My personal motto is, if I am naked, I will NOT be rushed. (smile) Plus, I really wanted to relax, so I made a beeline to the locker room, put my prison jumper on and headed to the poultice rooms.
Red Clay Room at Spa World USA
First stop, the Amethyst room. All of the poultice rooms look like earthen igloos and inside they usually have murals and designs on the wall made from whatever stone the room boasts. In the Amethyst room the walls are made with obviously amethyst, rose quartz, and green quartz. Supposedly it emits oscillating energy waves. I don't know if it did all that, but it definitely made me sweat. I lost all track of time gazing at the murals. By the time I realized I had stayed a little too long, I was light headed and dizzy. Instead of hitting another poultice room, I headed to the restaurant/juice bar ordered Bubble Tea and Chicken Wings...yes I know, out of everything in the world to order at a Korean bathhouse! In my defense, if you have ever been to a Korean barbeque...you know Koreans know a thing or two about chicken wings. And these wings were no different! I found the nearest couch and literally pigged out.
Onyx Room at Spa World USA
I would like to end this post, saying I hit all the poultice rooms...but in actuality, after my meal, I fell asleep on the couch and woke up 2 hours later. I can't make this stuff up. No one woke me, nor bothered me. It was two hours of the best sleep I have had since I was a baby. With daily routine deadlines approaching, I had to go. While changing, I felt remorseful, I did not want to leave this water oasis in the middle of a strip mall in Centreville, VA. I walked to the front desk, retrieved my shoes, and immediately headed out of the glass doors, back to the big box stores, cookie cutter housing developments and suburban sprawl reality that is northern Virginia. I shall return, Spa World. I shall return.
